actress Claire Lanay
And right before all of that during the Thicker Than Money episode, actress Claire Lanay donned her microphone and eager attitude as Kathleen, a reporter on the hunt for the latest juicy story revolving around Blake Carrington and his family.
Think you’ve seen Claire before? Well, she was the hellacious party girl in the feature film, “Stretch,” starring Patrick Wilson, Ed Helms, Chris Pine, Brooklyn Decker and Jessica Alba. Didn’t see that one? Maybe it was her stints on the Fox comedy, “Ben & Kate,” or in Antoine Fuqua’s Fox TV pilot project “Exit Strategy.” Are you a late-night owl? Then, perhaps you saw her in a few comedy sketches on TBS’s talker “Conan.” Or if you’re a soap fan then I’ll be you saw her recurring on “General Hospital” and its SoapNet off-shoot “General Hospital: Night Shift.” Missed all of these? Relax, we hear Claire can be seen in another new series for NBC coming later this year.
Clearly, Claire Lanay has been hard at work. And, thankfully she’s found some time to answer a few questions for us:
Tell us about your role in “Dynasty.”
CLAIRE: I would say Kathleen likes to think of herself as a Lois Lane of sorts. A hard-hitting journalist on the hunt for an exclusive scoop. Now in reality, it might be more along the lines of her milking the drama within the Carrington family for all the glamorous tabloid fodder it’s worth.
What would you consider your characters ‘best’ quality? And their ‘worst’?
CLAIRE: She’s definitely focused and very serious about her career aspirations. Ambitious, young and hungry to make a name for herself. Seems willing to forgo grace or class to get the first crack at a juicy headline. Opportunistic, aggressively pursuing fame by proxy. Kathleen strikes me as someone who would idolize Wall Street Journal investigative reporter John Carreyrou who broke the whole Elizabeth Holmes-Theranos story. I think she would delight not so much in uncovering massive fraud and deception, but more so at the idea of being the one to topple a powerful entity or empire.
Any chance your character will return again?
CLAIRE: I don’t see why not. Hint hint to the ‘Dynasty’ folks who are reading this. [Laughs] They did get renewed for a third season, so there’s definitely a chance.
How was it to work on this fan-favorite series?
CLAIRE: It was so much fun! Everyone was lovely, hard-working and really supportive of each other.
Any interesting stories from the set you can share?
CLAIRE: Well, I didn't get to wrestle anybody in a fountain like Joan Collins… maybe next time? I did work with some terrific people and I'm glad I had enough restraint and professionalism not to run up to Grant Show and blurt out “hey my mom used to watch you on ‘Melrose Place’”!
What’s the biggest lesson you learned from working on this project?
CLAIRE: Now that I think about it, this has really been an eye-opener for a couple reasons. The number of TV shows and films shooting in Atlanta is staggering. Wasn’t there over 450 productions in Georgia last year? That’s crazy! Folks weren’t kidding when they said this is the Hollywood of the South. Another thing that I’m excited to see is more diversity and inclusion in front of as well as behind the camera. I’m really grateful for any chance I get to work and grow as a performer. I look forward to all the wonderful experiences that are on the horizon.
You’re also in a new series for NBC; what can you tell us about that?
CLAIRE: ‘Council of Dads’ is a new drama series that is inspired by Bruce Feiler’s best-selling memoir about the upheaval he and his family are thrown into after being diagnosed with a rare, life-threatening cancer. I play a nurse tending to the family while they’re trying to deal with this tragic news. Fun fact: A pilot for ‘Council of Dads’ was originally shot as a comedy for Fox back in 2011 but it didn’t go anywhere. It was directed by Anthony & Joe Russo who both went on to direct Marvel movies including the recently released ‘Avengers: Endgame’. Looks like they did alright for themselves! This time around, the show is more in the vein of another NBC tearjerker series ‘This is Us’.
And, now just for fun:
Who’s your favorite actor/actress?
CLAIRE: Danai Gurira and Tessa Thompson because I love my beautiful badass ladies. Jon Bernthal is incredible. Oh…have you seen ‘Barry’ on HBO? Bill Hader is so damn good!
What role from the past do you wish you could have played?
CLAIRE: Trinity from ‘The Matrix’. I can’t believe that movie is 20 years old. How awesome would it be to basically get paid to train to become a superhero! I also would have liked to have played Furiosa in ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’.
Favorite movie or TV show from your childhood.
CLAIRE: ‘Terminator 2: Judgment Day’. ‘Star Trek: The Next Generation’. I had two older brothers and I watched everything they watched. That meant a lot of action and sci-fi.
Tell us one thing that would surprise our readers to learn about you.
CLAIRE: I’ve been training in martial arts, stage combat, kickboxing, sword, bo staff and firearms for a couple years. I’d like to learn more about how to do fight choreography and stunt coordinating.
How can fans keep up with you?
CLAIRE: Everyone is more than welcome to follow me on Twitter: @clairelanay link
Instagram: @clairelanay link
or Facebook: /clairelanay link
Also check out my website: clairelanay.com link
